The Christmas Mischief Managed!
by Raven of the Shadows
Summary: Lily and the Marauders' first Christmas with Harry. A bit of history for this story: Snape reconciled with Lily, and the Marauders tolerate him sometimes for her sake. [Written for TGS Advent Calendar]
1. Eggnog Trouble

**Eggnog Trouble**

The door to the cottage opened softly, and Lily stepped in. When she saw Harry sleeping peacefully in his cot, she sighed and shut the door behind her.

The guys were lounging on the couches. She dumped her bag on the table and kissed James. "Where's Peter?" she asked.

"Somewhere," Sirius replied, winking. Lily glared at him, and he grinned. She ignored him and turned to James.

"I'll be in the kitchen." He nodded absently.

A minute later, she yelled from the kitchen: "James Charlus Potter!" James sat up in alarm.

Sirius winced, making a slit-throat expression with his finger. "That's all three names, mate. Good luck." Even Remus looked up from his book for whole five seconds to give him a sympathetic look.

James turned to face his doom. There, standing in the kitchen doorway was his wife, holding up two empty glasses, looking at him with a death glare. "What did I tell you about drinking when you were babysitting Harry?"

"B-But it's just eggnog," James said, standing up and backing off, his hands raised in a surrender.

Lily's glare didn't diminish an iota. "You have three seconds to run." James turned to his friends to help. Sirius sat there with an indifferent expression on his face. "Oh, and don't think I forgot about you, Sirius," she said, and Sirius blanched. Remus gave them both an 'I told you so' look and went back to reading.

And then the two men were running out of the living room, trying to dodge stinging hexes from tigress Lily.

* * *

Day 1: (word) Eggnog

 **Word Count: 258**


	2. Date

**Date**

"Lily," he said, his voice seductive. "Will you go out with me? On a date?"

Deciding to humour him, Lily nodded. "When?" she asked.

"Right now," her husband replied, grinning widely. "See you in twenty. Wear something comfortable."

"James!" she yelled after him as he ran out of the room. "It is nine in the evening!"

"I know," he replied from the staircase in a singsong 'I know something you don't' tone.

"And what about Harry?" she asked, feeling somewhat surprised that he had already planned something in secret without her knowing.

"All set. Sirius will be here in five." He answered from upstairs. Huffing, Lily left to get ready.

It was twenty minutes later that the couple was standing in the living room, waiting for their dog-friend, who was predictably late.

The door opened and Sirius entered, slightly out of breath. "Sorry, sorry!" he said and jumped on the couch, transforming into his animagus form mid-air. Lily scowled at him.

James leaned and kissed her softly. "Don't scowl," he whispered in her ear. "It diminishes your beauty." Lily shivered. "Let's go, shall we?"

When they crossed the threshold, James put his hands on her eyes and led her… somewhere. A minute later, he stopped and removed his hands. Lily opened her eyes and gasped.

They were in the backyard, but it had been completely transformed. Fairies hung in the trees and the bushes, lighting the place up with a soft glow. A blanket was spread on the ground; candles were lit in the middle, and it was set for a dinner for two.

Lily turned to her husband, a soft smile on her lips. "I love it," she breathed.

James grinned. He led her to the blanket and helped her sit. He sat down opposite to her and served the dinner. The couple ate in silence, enjoying the scenery.

Then, just as James was serving chocolate ice cream — her favourite — his hand hit the candlestand, which fell down. The blanket caught fire, and the couple immediately stood up.

James started stomping on the fire to put it out, and Lily burst into laughter. When the fire didn't die out, James shrugged his robe off and tried to put the fire out with it. James scowled at her. "What's so funny about it?"

Lily wiped her tears off. "Honestly, James," she replied from where she was leaning against the tree. "Are you a wizard or not?"

* * *

 ****Day 2: (object) Candle

 **Word Count: 408**


	3. Singing Snape

**Singing Snape**

It was Saturday, and the Marauders were in the living room of the Potter household. James currently had Harry in his lap and was making bubbles from his wand, grinning widely each time Harry laughed

"Okay," Lily said from the kitchen's doorway, gaining the boys' attention. She glared at each of them in the eye. "Sev should be here any minute, and you all are going to behave!" Sirius opened his mouth to retort but backed off at Lily's death glare. She walked back into the kitchen.

Someone knocked door. "The door's open, Sev. Come in!" Lily called out from the kitchen.

Snape entered, and just as he passed the door, he started dancing. "In a good mood today, Snivellus?" He turned to James and Sirius with a murderous look in his eyes. "Ooh! I'm scared," Sirius cried.

"SIRIUS ORION BLACK!" Lily screamed from the kitchen. "Undo whatever you did before I come find you!"

Sirius blanched, then grinned. "I can't!" he yelled back.

Lily entered the room, her hands on her hips. "What did you say? Remus, did you hear what he said?"

Remus looked up from his book, a rare, mischievous glint in his eyes. "No, I didn't." Lily gaped at him. "But, it sounds to me like someone needs to sing a Christmas Carol."

Severus, who had been silent during this, gave out a battle cry.

* * *

Day 3: (dialogue) "It sounds to me like someone needs to sing a Christmas Carol."

 **Word Count: 229**


	4. Shopping at Harrods

**Shopping at Harrods**

If Lily had known this would happen, she would never have brought them here.

Sev was babysitting Harry, and Lily and the Marauders had come to Harrods for Christmas shopping, as it was Harry's first one. Once inside the story, the twenty-year-old men had turned to kids aged five, and Lily was already developing a headache.

Right now, they were in the bookstore, on Remus' demand

"What do you think about this, Lils?" James said from behind her, and Lily turned. "For Harry," he said, waving the set of Jane Austen books.

Lily rubbed her temple. "For the last time, James, Harry's _five-month-old_!"

James humphed but put the set back.

"I'm all done," Remus said, nearing the couple, Sirius in tow. Lily could have sighed in relief.

They exited the store, and Lily turned to them. "Can we go home now?"

"What?" Sirius cried in outrage. "We haven't even bought anything yet." James and Peter nodded.

Lily could have cried out in frustration. She hadn't ever hated James' bottomless bag so much.

"To the toy store, then," Sirius said, skipping like a kid. James, Sirius, and Peter all ran to the toy store. Lily resisted the urge to strangle herself as she knew this would be pure torture. James and Sirius would most likely buy the whole store out. She turned to Remus, who gave her a pitying look.

* * *

Day 4: (scenario) Picking out a Christmas gift for a loved one

 **Word Count: 229**


	5. Poor Sirius

**Poor Sirius**

James, Lily, and Sirius were lounging on the couches, having a lazy afternoon, when Sirius suddenly sat up.

"James," he said, "Imagine your wife bought a recipe for fertility potion, and come Christmas gave it to someone else…"

"What?" Lily blurted out, then looked at James, who had asked the same thing.

"Lily would never do that," James said, his tone confident. Lily couldn't help but smile.

Sirius smirked in Lily's direction, and she did not like the mischievous look in his eyes at all. "Let's find out then, shall we?" The Potters nodded. "Did you, or did you not, buy _Moste Potente Potions_ for Snivellus?"

" _Severus_ ," Lily corrected, frowning. "And yes, I did, but—"

"Did that book contain a recipe on fertility potions?"

"Yes, I think so, b—"

"See," Sirius said, standing up on the couch and raising his fist in triumph. "You need to rein your wife in, James."

Lily glared at him and turned to James, who was staring at Sirius, his face blank. "Padfoot," he drawled, "did you drop your mind on the way here?"

Sirius took a step back and nearly fell down; Lily laughed. "James!" he cried, holding a hand to his heart. "Prongs, old friend, you wound me!"

James _accio_ 'ed _A History of Magic_ and opened it. "Honestly, Pads," he said, "you've lost your Marauder touch. You're getting old."

Sirius actually did fall off the couch.

* * *

Day 13: (dialogue) "Imagine your [husband/wife] bought a [insert gift], and come Christmas gave it to someone else…

 **Word Count: 233**


End file.
